Paul Giamatti May Join David Cronenberg’s ‘Cosmopolis’

If Cosmopolis – a story about a 28 year-old billionaire who takes a jaunt across town just to get a haircut from a proper barber and ends up blowing his fortune – sounds peculiar, just remember it’s being brought to life by the guy who made movies about mutant children, evil gynecologists, and Jeff Goldblum as a giant insect.

David Cronenberg is the man behind the Cosmopolis film adapation and he’s already lined up Colin Farrell and Marion Cotillard to star in the film. Now it seems that Oscar-nominee Paul Giamatti may sign up for this strange cautionary tale as well.

According to The Playlist, Giamatti’s rep says that the actor is in active discussions to join the cast of Cronenberg’s Cosmopolis, but denies that a deal has been secured. The John Adams star signed on for The Hangover 2 recently, but his upcoming schedule is otherwise fairly open. Cosmopolis is unlikely to begin production for few months anyway, since shooting on the Total Recall remake is tentatively scheduled to begin by Spring 2011 and that could keep Farrell busy for the next while.

Cronenberg is currently in the midst of post-production on his latest collaboration with actor Viggo Mortensen, the Sigmund Freud pic A Dangerous Method, which will also prevent Cosmopolis from beginning production in the immediate future.

Cosmopolis is an unorthodox horror tale that deals with the transformation of a character’s existence (a theme Cronenberg has explored throughout his filmmaking career) over the course of a single day. Farrell is set to play Eric Packer, the rich protagonist who cheats on his wife (Cotillard), is attacked by a bizarre assortment of individuals (stalkers, protesters, etc.), and finds his life spinning utterly out of control as his fortunes start to dwindle away.

No word yet on who Giamatti would portray in Cosmopolis or if he’ll play a central or supporting role in the film, but he’s a flexible character actor who can portray anything from a hammy, guns-blazing villain (Shoot ‘Em Up) to an officer of the law in a period piece (The Illusionist) and still be convincing. We have little doubt that he is up for whatever Cronenberg throws at him.

It’s also good to see Cotillard getting more work and sticking with projects that involve quality filmmakers. She was good as Leonardo DiCaprio’s deceased wife in Inception, but hopefully the actress will get to play a larger and more fleshed-out part in Cronenberg’s Cosmopolis.